Cycling The School Run

Some have bikes, others have wheels instead of feet.

I have been cycling the school run for so long that I don’t really question it – to me it is the obvious choice. To my children, using bikes to get places appears to be so normal that my son at four years old drew a picture in which it appears that two of us are on the cargo bike and the other two actually have wheels instead of feet.

Yet on the rare occasions my husband – who is also a lifelong cyclist – does the school run, he uses the car. This would suggest it’s not the obvious choice for many people, even if they do cycle themselves.

I’m hoping I can persuade you to give it a go.

Of course, cycling the school run is not for everyone. Here are some of the completely valid and understandable reasons why you might never cycle the school run:

• You live too far from your children’s school. School catchment areas can be strange, and not everyone goes to their catchment school.
• You live too close to your children’s school. If it takes you five minutes to walk to school, it’s really not worth the effort of getting everyone’s bikes out!
• You need your car for work and this is where you go straight after dropping your children at school.
• You or your child / children are not physically able to cycle.
• A whole host of other reasons why, which are frankly none of my business.

I am all for cycling to and from school. Yet you will never hear me say that everyone should cycle the school run. If you have any of the reasons above for not cycling, then please do not shout at me – simply stop reading now – these articles are not aimed at you.

These articles are aimed at people who say things like, ‘I would like to cycle the kids to school but….’. I used to say ‘I would like to cycle the kids to school but…’. Then I found a way to give it a go. The I found other ways to continue.

When you include playgroup and nursery along with school, I have now been cycling my children to school for six years. It has had its challenges and its stresses, but I am still cycling to and from school and plan to do so for many more years yet.

The more I cycle the school run, the more reasons I find to continue doing so, and the more ways I find to deal with the problems which arise. This is what I want to share with you.

To avoid writing a phenomenally long article (after all, who wants to read phenomenally long articles), I have broken this up into a series of little pieces, as described below. There’s kind of an order, but it really doesn’t matter. Pick the ones which interest you, ignore the ones which don’t.

• Why Cycle The School Run? Looks at the obvious and less obvious reasons why cycling can be a good thing. I am a firm believer that it is ultimately self-interest which inspires change. My initial reasons were mostly to do with parking.
• Bikes For Cycling The School Run is a whistle-stop tour of the kinds of bike we have used over the years.
• Reasons NOT To Cycle The School Run is about the reasons which needn’t be reasons if you really want to cycle.
• Cycling The School Run DESPITE The Traffic takes an in-depth look at handling the traffic when your route to school involves roads.
• Top Tips For Cycling The School Run contains some of my top tips of what to consider when you’re just getting started.
• Cycling The School Run In Winter will describe the special considerations for cycling to school when many put their bikes away.
• Spreading The Love For Cycling The School Run will give you some ideas for supporting others to cycle.

If you have ever considered cycling the school run, I hope you will find something here to inspire or support you to give it a go.

Cycling The School Run Articles

This series of articles are based on a talk I gave in August 2020 for Greener Kirkcaldy. If listening is your thing, you can access the recording here. 

The articles follow a kind of order as shown below, but can also be read in isolation. If you have questions or comments I would love to hear them and will follow them up with further articles if I can.

1. Cycling The School Run
2. Why Cycle The School Run
3. Bikes For Cycling The School Run
4. Reasons NOT To Cycle The School Run
5. Cycling The School Run DESPITE The Traffic
6. Top Tips For Cycling The School Run
7. Cycling The School Run In Winter
8. Spreading The Love For Cycling The School Run